2022/2023 NHL/Wild Offseason-Season-Postseason Thread

Oh wow…turn of events eh

Good lord they looked like they were on life support and then bang! bang!

Keep shooting on Ottinger!

Both teams with stretches of wtf defense leads to quick goals…

Pucks on net have to be a point of emphasis after a goalie endured 5 periods of hockey. Cut the fancy stuff and fire away

6 goals in two periods with a top 5 goalie sitting on the bench

This game is a GONGSHOW

I don’t like the decision of starting Flower over Gus tonight but the Stars are flying! Maybe he would of stopped those 2 breakaways?

7-6 in 2OT

I guess this game should give Gus the net for the rest of the series then… so goalie controversy over…

Unreal mental breakdowns by both team’s defense for a playoff game…

JoeMX1825 wrote:

I guess this game should give Gus the net for the rest of the series then… so goalie controversy over…

Unreal mental breakdowns by both team’s defense for a playoff game…

Agreed. Ride the Gus bus until it stalls.

tswoboda wrote:

Get a few timely saves completely changes momentum of a game. Down 4-1 everything changes and Dallas taking advantage

Yup just building the goal scores confidence and no longer have that card to play in the series if you need it.

Boston got smoked at home tonight so anything is possible in the playoffs…

They have no other option but to ride Gus Bus now.

I just keep telling myself it’s a marathon not a race but it is not helping.
But I hope fans didn’t expect a sweep after game 1.

This ain’t all Flowers fault. Granted he’s not been great.

KK, Zuc and Boldy need to show up and do something.

The amount of defensive breakdowns is getting biblical. For both sides.

No center sucks.

Coming off a big win there’s always a let down. Dallas had to respond and they did. Nice plays by Dallas. But….we gifted them a lot so far this game.

Hopefully Ek and Hartman are back at home.

The paases to nobody are awful again.

Not saying it’s Flowers fault. But we did score 3 goals through two periods. Should be a 3-4 game at worst.

If they’re gonna lose this game they should at least take somebody out. Thinking like punch Suter square in the face .

Get it, Flowers been bad. But KK, Zuc and Boldy are lost out there. All 3 have made passes to nobody, multiple times. Zuc and KK are turn over machines right now. Zero puck control. Boldy has had opportunities and done nothing spectacular with them. Either high and wide or right into a blocker or glove.

If you’re watching the ESPN broadcast, Boucher made a good point in that perhaps the Wild staff protected Gus by starting Flower in a game that was likely already tilted in Dallas’s advantage due to their desperation in needing to win a home game and Hartman & Ek being out…so sacrifice Flower in game #2 and then its Gus’s net for the rest of the series…

That theory will likely help me sleep better tonight so i’m going with it…

Big wins are rarely followed by a win.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

If you’re watching the ESPN broadcast, Boucher made a good point in that perhaps the Wild staff protected Gus by starting Flower in a game that was likely already tilted in Dallas’s advantage due to their desperation in needing to win a home game and Hartman & Ek being out…so sacrifice Flower in game #2 and then its Gus’s net for the rest of the series…

That theory will likely help me sleep better tonight so i’m going with it…

100 percent that is what they did but it’s the playoffs and you can’t give a team a sniff for free…especially in this series these teams are to close.

Ready for game 3. Not sure my heart will take a 9 o’clock game in person but f around and find out I guess.

Not defending flower as he didn’t make a big save or two to keep them in it but their goals except for five hole from Ben were legit.

If you are putting KK out with less than 7 minutes why not have Reavo be his wing.

Honestly not sure why you even send him out.!

Look how many seats are open now. That’s terrible.

Hope fans didn’t expect a sweep after game 1. Buckle up this series is going at least 6 if not 7 and we will see who is left able to still skate.

Well, that didn’t go very well…..

What were all the misconducts in the 3rd!?

IceNEyes1986 wrote:

Well, that didn’t go very well…..

What were all the misconducts in the 3rd!?

game was over, refs just taking control so nothing happens…. They probably told both benches if anybody so much as crosschecks somebody its a 10 minute misconduct…

Bottom line the Wild stole home ice away from Dallas, now they need to win their 2 home games to force Dallas to win 3 straight… Starting Flower and sitting Ek and probably Hartman was a longterm series strategy by the Wild coaching staff, we’ll see if it works or not…. The playoffs are a different animal, just look at how Boston the greatest regular season team in NHL history, got smoked 6-3 at home tonight…

Wonder who Deano will put in goal in game 3?

Nyquist had 2 assists and was a +2 in that gongshow last night, when does the staff figure out he should probably get elevated in the lineup? Maybe replace a guy on the 1st line who disappeared months ago, I bet even Kirill would approve it…

Not sure if the opening minutes smashing check by Benn did anything to him, but Spurgeon played one of his worst games of the season last night…Middleton was bad too….

JoeMX1825 wrote:

If you’re watching the ESPN broadcast, Boucher made a good point in that perhaps the Wild staff protected Gus by starting Flower in a game that was likely already tilted in Dallas’s advantage due to their desperation in needing to win a home game and Hartman & Ek being out…so sacrifice Flower in game #2 and then its Gus’s net for the rest of the series…

This here is what you call a galaxy brain. Coaching in the playoffs is so much easier than Deano makes it. Simply play the best players available. Do whatever you can to win the next game, that’s it, it’s really that simple. You don’t give away free wins the in the playoffs, that f-ing nuts.

He’s going to get railroaded for this and he should. I don’t buy into the idea this can change the series momentum but he just gave a game away.

Was having flashbacks to Kyle Rau playing against Vegas 2 years ago with Zach Parise and Matt Boldy in the press box.

KP wrote:

I don’t like the decision of starting Flower over Gus tonight but the Stars are flying!

I didnt like that decision at all, but I get it. I am sure they were thinking with all the work Gus had in game 1 give him a rest knowing that Dallas was going to come out flying, but we could have had this game. Its not all Fleury’s fault, but he is just so erratic and I think its hard for the D to flip flop playing styles between the two because they are so different.

I hated the move to start Fluery. Not because it was all his fault (although his 3.84 goals above expected sure didn’t help), but you just don’t change anything to rattle the ship. It was a dumb decision. And decisions like this have hurt them in the past and it’s been this coaching staff that has done it. Personally I’m shocked they started Gus last game the way this staff thinks. But they aren’t the same team when Flower is out there. They are running around in their zone a lot more because he doesn’t control rebounds and doesn’t make the second or third save after them. The overthinking this coaching staff thinks they have to do is getting old.

I hope we don’t see him again this series. I’m just glad I popped a gummy before the game. Figured I’d need it and I did.